Returning with a vengeance — and also a new song — after their summer hiatus, Maple Forum alums Clamfight have announced a slew of fall tour dates. In addition to a slot at Stoner Hands of Doom at Strange Matter in Richmond, Virginia, on Nov. 7, the four-piece are doing two gigs  THIS. VERY. WEEKEND. with Philly rockers Thee Nosebleeds and in addition to regular-type local stuff, they’ll head south following SHoD to bang out a couple evenings in the good company of Hollow Leg and Shroud Eater, among others.

In their typical style, the band sent along this update:

We’re back gang….and find ourselves another season’s worth of Neolithic archaeology lyrical fodder richer, but one gall bladder poorer.

So it goes.

Here’s where to get palm muted/yelled at about rock art:

This weekend we’re out and about and possibly falling over with Philly’s best rock and roll band, THEE NOSEBLEEDS (sorry, rock that nasty requires all caps).

Friday 9/27 we’re at the El ‘N’ Gee in New London, Connecticut with Thee Nosebleeds, the Cryptics, and Empty Vessels.

Saturday 9/28 we’re at the Firehouse Saloon in Rochester, New York with Thee Nosebleeds, Baba Yaga, and Pink Elephant.

October 26th we’re at the Boot and Saddle in Philadelphia with Screaming Rattler and Wizard Eye (who a little bird with 6 foot long dreadlocks tells me are hitting the studio shortly to record a new full length).

November 7th we’re at Strange Matter in Richmond, Virginia for the opening night of Stoner Hands of Doom 13 with A.P.F, Pill Buster, Compel, and more In honor of how excited we are to be part of such an amazing festival (the rest of the weekend includes Wizard Eye, Beelzefuzz, Admiral Browning, Lo-Pan, Backwoods Payback, Faces of Bayon, Second Grave, Wasted Theory and many, many more) we’ll pressing 100 copies of a seven inch of our new song “Bathosphere.” We have no plans to release it in any other format and once it’s gone, it’s gone.

November 8th we’ll be in Orlando Florida to challenge Hollow Leg and Shroud Eater in between some serious air boat racing/alligator wrasslin’ we’re going to play a show at a location to be announced.

November 9th we’re at the Jinx in Savannah Georgia with Hollow Leg and Shroud Eater and Crazy Bag Lady.

November 12th we’re at JR’s in Philadelphia with Devil to Pay, Heavy Temple, and the Cloth.

November 22 we’re at Mojo Main in Delaware with Braincandle and Count Von Count.

And until we have something solid to say about our third record here’s a song that will definitely be on it: http://doommantiavol2.bandcamp.com/track/block-ship

Clamfight, “Block Ship” from Doommantia Vol. 2 (2013)

You’ve probably seen some of Adam Burke‘s art. Maybe it was an Ice Dragon album cover, or a show poster for any number of bands out of the Portland area and Pacific Northwest — in addition to playing in Fellwoods, Burke has worked with Diesto, Ancient Warlocks, Danava, Crag Dweller, Hobosexual, Sons of Huns, Mystery Ship and many others — and as the poster that went up with the Oberon and Grel tour dates yesterday proves, his reach is beyond regional. Drawing on a visual style influenced by classic fantasy artists like Frank Frazetta and other old pulp sci-fi paperbacks, Burke has come to create works that immediately stand out and are easily identifiable as his own.

Raised Baptist, as he notes, Burke began like a lot of artists to draw early, and discovered music later. The two seem to have become intertwined, however, and more and more parties are taking his works for their own, whether it’s The Golden Grass from Brooklyn asking him to design their logo or the podcast The Soggy Bog of Doom using one of his paintings for its banner. Colors are rich and deep throughout most of Burke‘s watercolors and acrylics, and whether it’s a stark, foreboding landscape or a rainbow-shooting eyeball with a fetus in a teardrop, what seems at first like a familiar stylistic ideal is given a fresh perspective.

Fellwoods released their debut album, Wulfram in 2011 (discussed here), then working under the moniker The Moss, and signed with Svart Records to issue the follow-up Gyromancer EP, initially streaming it early in 2013 before taking  it down ahead of the still-to-come Svart version. In the interview that follows, Burke gives the latest on that as well as some background on the development of his style, his influences as an artist and some of the processes that go into making his pieces, working with bands in and around Portland and some of the differences between creating a visual work and writing songs with Fellwoods.

Complete Q&A and a sampling of Burke‘s art follows the jump. Click any image to enlarge it and please enjoy:

Read more »

“Lotus Jam” is the second official video from Beelzefuzz‘s self-titled The Church Within Records debut album (review here), which was released last month, and if they continue to make clips for each track in this fashion, you can pretty much rest assured that I’ll post all of them. This one follows “Reborn” (posted here), and keeps a similar blend of performance footage, psychedelic lighting and spliced in still photos, fitting the trio’s progressive, individualized style of doom.

If I haven’t said so in five minutes, the record is stellar and you should hear it. “Lotus Jam” is among the more upbeat cuts on offer, but represents that side of Beelzefuzz‘s sound well and finds guitarist/vocalist Dana Ortt recounting a suitably epic narrative over the steady groove of his riffs, Pug Kirby‘s bass and Darin McCloskey‘s drums, and the three coming together to enact a high-quality hook that stands with the record’s best.

I’m hoping to get an interview with these guys together over the next couple weeks, so stay tuned for that, but in the meantime, here’s “Lotus Jam,” directed by Pat W. Dougherty of CineMavericks Media and ready for the digging:

Beelzefuzz on Thee Facebooks

The Church Within Records

Following a hiatus which was reportedly spent in regression therapy and headbanging to well-worn vinyl — which I suppose is a kind of regression therapy in itself — Chris “Woody High” MacDermott of Mighty High returns with the much-anticipated next installment of his Spine of Overkill column. This time around, Woody recalls picking up Accept‘s fourth album, 1982’s Restless and Wild.

Please enjoy:

I knew I was going to have trouble following up my last Spine of Overkill. How could I top a story about space truckin’ to L’amours in Brooklyn by myself to see Motörhead? I spent a lot of time in deep meditation to relive the details of that day and I’m not sure if I want to do that to myself again. 15 was a terrible age.

One thing that did come up while undergoing that past-life regression therapy was the thrill of hearing “Fast as a Shark” for the first time. I thought I knew all the fastest metal jams at that time — everything by Motörhead, “Delivering the Goods” by Judas Priest, “Mothra” by Anvil, etc. but “Fast as a Shark” completely floored me. I’m pretty sure I asked somebody at the show, “who is this?” I had never heard of Accept before but I knew I had to track down the album as soon as possible. I knew Restless & Wild was the album to get because the DJ at L’amours also played the title track. I knew it was the same band that did “Fast as a Shark.” At first I thought the lyrics were “Let’s dance” but I knew that couldn’t be right. Luckily someone near me screamed the chorus of “Restless and wild!” enough times to make it sink in.

Within a week I was back in NYC on one of my usual record buying trips. Top of the list was to find “Fast as a Shark.” I wasn’t sure if the band’s name was Except or Accept but I started in the metal section under “A” at Bleeker Bob’s and there it was. I was used to seeing rows of Marshall stacks on stage but this album cover offered something different. They had THREE speaker cabinets piled on top of each other rather than the usual two. The drummer was pounding a giant chrome drum kit with two of the biggest bass drums I’d ever seen. One guitarist was soloing on a Gibson SG in a leather jacket while the other had on a leather vest and was chugging on a Flying V. Total Judas Priest. Front and center there was a small guy with short hair strangling the bass player. This had to be good!

It was an import, which meant it wasn’t shrink-wrapped and I could check out the inside. There was an inner sleeve with lyrics on one side and a big Accept logo on the other, perfect size for tracing and putting on book covers. Even better was the clear red vinyl. I knew I was buying the album but that just made it even minter. Everything about it was totally metal, even the record label — Heavy Metal Worldwide. I started paying attention to what labels were releasing metal albums. If it was on Metal Blade, Megaforce, Neat, etc., you knew it was going to be metal no matter what. You couldn’t trust the major labels. They’d market something as metal and it would sound like REO Speedwagon or Loverboy. Fuck that shit! A few months later I saw the German version of Restless & Wild. It had a pair of flaming Flying V’s wrapped up in barbed wire. That was cool but too expensive for me to buy a second copy. In hindsight I should have bought it since I was going to be playing the album to death for the next 30 years.

I could not wait to crank it up and was not disappointed. To this day, “Fast as a Shark” is my favorite opening to any album. I never get tired of hearing the pops, scratches and the “hi-dee-hi-do-hi-dah’s” of a children’s folk song. It’s such a great build up before the big needle scratch and Udo’s opening scream. Many years later I found out the song was called “Ein Heller und ein Batzen” (“A Farthing and a Penny”) and one of the children’s voices belonged to Dieter Dierks, noted Krautrock producer who also worked with Scorpions. Even though the song was written in the 1830s, it was a popular marching song during the Nazi era and caused Accept a lot of grief. “Fast as a Shark” is simply stunning — the perfect combination of Motörhead speed and Judas Priest precision riffing. A lot of headbangers back then considered Motörhead too noisy and chaotic. On “Fast as a Shark” you could hear every note of every chord. This took songs like “Rapid Fire” from British Steel and delivered it at “Overkill” velocity. Fucking awesome. It still sounds incredible today. I remember playing this song for some of my punk rock friends who claimed most metal was too slow. They were speechless.

Following up “Fast as a Shark” with “Restless & Wild” is an unbeatable one-two combo. Certain songs belong together. Separating “Waiting for the Bus” from “Jesus Just Left Chicago” is lame. Same with “Heartbreaker” and “Living Loving Maid (She’s Just a Woman).” “Restless & Wild” kicks so much ass. It’s just the right tempo for headbanging and has some built in dynamics to give your neck a rest before the big chorus. The rhythm section drives hard and the twin guitars are so powerful and crunchy, but razor sharp. Herman Frank is pictured and credited as a guitarist but he joined the band after the album was recorded. All of the guitar parts were laid down by the incredible Wolf Hoffmann. He doesn’t get nearly enough credit for developing the tight, powerful riffing style that guys like James Hetfield and Scott Ian would build their own styles off of. Then there’s the powerhouse grunt of Udo Dirkschneider, a shrinky-dink version of Rob Halford with a bark all his own.

The rest of side one is great but falls a bit short of the excitement that the opening two songs generate. “Ahead of the Pack” and “Shake Your Heads” are solid mid-tempo bangers. “Neon Nights” starts off with some fancy, introspective solo electric guitar before it gets all distorted and drops down an octave. Parts of it sound a little bit like what Cliff would do on his bass solo a year later on Metallica‘s first album. When the song kicks in, it’s a moody Scorps-influenced pounder.

Side two starts off with the blatant “Livin’ after Midnight” tribute of “Get Ready.” I’ve always been surprised this song wasn’t a big hit. “Get Ready” and “Rock Forever” by Judas Priest are my two favorite songs to blast with the windows down when pulling into the parking lot of a heavy rock concert. If you’ve ever wondered what Mercyful Fate would have sounded like with a more “normal” singer, then “Demon’s Night” might be a good indication. Wolf fires up a killer riff that’s always reminded me of Black Sabbath‘s “Zero the Hero” from Born Again (released a year after R&W). Back then I used to accuse Iron Maiden of stealing “Two Minutes to Midnight” from Venom‘s “Welcome to Hell” but Accept‘s “Flash Rockin’ Man” might have been the source, too. “Don’t Go Stealing My Soul Away” is kind of a commercial track with some cool woodblock on it. It all wraps up with the outstanding “Princess of the Dawn.” Years later when I started reading about Krautrock I always hoped it would sound like “Princess of the Dawn.” It didn’t. Nothing really sounds like “Princess of the Dawn.” Only Saxon‘s “Dallas 1PM” has a similar hypnotic, driving groove but Accept‘s is a bit more exotic sounding. Only Udo can get away with singing about fairytales and still make it sound metal. The abrupt ending to the song totally confused me at first but over the years I’ve come to really like it. The album starts off with such a big “fuck you” and it kind of ends the same way, too.

After buying Restless & Wild, I went back and picked up their earlier albums Accept, I’m A Rebel and Breaker. They all had some good songs but were pretty uneven. (There are rumors of a version of the song “I’m A Rebel” with Bon Scott on vocals but who knows if that’s true or not). When Balls to the Wall came out later in ’83, I picked up the import immediately. It was a good album but nowhere close to Restless & Wild. By the time Metal Heart came out in 1985 I had moved onto bands who built their entire reputation on every song being like “Fast as a Shark.” Goddamn, what an album. Go crank it right now.

Accept, Restless and Wild (1982)

It should say something about the complexity of their operations that it takes six people to reproduce live what by and large is created solely by multi-instrumentalist Gilson Heitinga in the studio for the band Atlantis. Heitinga‘s project began seven years ago and will release Omens, their third mostly-instrumental full-length — there are also two EPs, most recently 2012’s La Petite Mort — on Oct. 14 through Burning World Records, crafting a sonic blend of post-metal, progressive electronica and a sense of tonal weight, resulting in six varied and textured tracks that truly seem to be the output of a clear vision for what the sound should be. Whether it’s the initial ambience of “Rapture” or the patient building of tension that leads to the slow-paced crush of “Widowmaker,” both of Omens‘ vinyl sides produce a rich, immersive feel that’s easy to get lost within.

There are stretches that come across as comparatively minimal, but Omens is never really still, and whether it’s a swirl of synth on backing the emergent shouts on “And She Drops the 7th Veil” or the noisy, chaotic patterning of the side B intro “The Path Into” — that path, incidentally, goes into “Widowmaker” — Atlantis always keep a sense of forward motion despite the changing sphere of each given track and the mood that each piece of the 50-minute offering makes so malleable throughout. As both the first instance of the weighted riffing that comes to the fore periodically and the album’s initial thrust,”Raptor” does a significant amount of work in establishing the atmospheric basis from which the rest of the songs work. It has both parcel fluctuations and an overarching linear build, and pays off in grand style only made more affecting by the drawn out keyboard melodies that top.

Because of that drama at the apex and because “Raptor” does so well in representing the whole of Omens from which it comes, I’m happy to have the chance to feature it here. Check it out on the player below, and please enjoy:

[mp3player width=480 height=150 config=fmp_jw_widget_config.xml playlist=atlantis-raptor.xml]

Omens will be available on Oct. 14 through Burning World Records and can be pre-ordered now on CD and gold or black vinyl.

Atlantis on Thee Facebooks

Burning World Records

Engagingly naturalist heavy rockers Grel have partnered with fellow Oklahoman outfit Oberon for a tour that will take them through the Midwest and down the East Coast en route to Stoner Hands of Doom 2013 in Richmond, Virginia. Grel, who changed their name from Deadweight after the release of 2012’s The Red Sun God EP (discussed here), are reportedly trying out and tightening up new songs on the road for the eight-day run, and they’ve hooked up with some cool acts on the way to the fest.

Details came joined by the Adam Burke poster for the tour down the PR wire:

Grel Announce Star Stuff Tour

Grel and Oberon will be embarking on tour this November. The route will take them through New England on their way to Stoner Hands of Doom.

The tour, named the Star Stuff Tour, will be the first national tour for both bands. Grel will be truly introducing itself to the world, following their name change from Deadweight. The two bands will be road-testing new material in preparation for new releases in the future as well as supporting their previous releases on the road (Grel’s “Red Sun God EP” and Oberon’s “Through Space, We Ride”). The tour will feature local support in each city, such as The Scimitar, Hössferatu, and Titanis.

When asked about the tour, three members of Grel simply said “what?” and another put sun screen on. Bentley Smith, had this to say, “yeah, it’ll be a fun time, especially with these Oberon guys, they all smell great.”

11/1 Lawton, OK @ Railhead Saloon w/ Juju Beans
11/2 Kansas City, MO @ Daveys Uptown w/ Hossferatu & Merlin
11/3 Chicago, IL @ Livewire Lounge w/ Marmora
11/4 Colombus, OH @ The Trees Bar
11/5 Northampton, MA @ The Elevens w/ Titanis & Scimitar
11/6 Boston, MA @ TBA
11/7 Philadelphia, PA @ JR’s Bar
11/9 Richmond, VA Stoner Hands of Doom

Grel: https://www.facebook.com/grelrocks
Oberon: https://www.facebook.com/OberonOK

Grel, The Red Sun God EP (2012)

Oppressive, claustrophobic and unremittingly dark, I’d say the new video for “An Altar or a Grave” from Portland-via-Providence ultra-doomers The Body makes a fitting complement to the song itself. Their new album, Christs, Redeemers, is available now for pre-order through Thrill Jockey — it’s due out Oct. 15 — and while I won’t pretend to have any grasp of exactly what the hell is happening in the clip, directed by Richard Rankin, the visual of drowning as part of some terrifying ritual likewise makes sense with the audio on hand.

The Body have announced a US tour for October into November that starts the same day the record is out. Dates for that and the Christs, Redeemers pre-order link follow the video below, courtesy of the ever-vigilant PR wire:

The Body, “An Altar or a Grave” official video

The Body Announces US Tour & Shares Haunting Video

Watch the murky, disturbing video for The Body’s “An Altar or A Grave” now
The Body announces fall US tour dates
Christs, Redeemers is out October, 15th on Thrill Jockey

The Body have shared a characteristically macabre video for “An Altar or A Grave” from their upcoming Thrill Jockey debut, Christs, Redeemers, which is out October 15th. Earlier today Invisible Oranges premiered the video, which was directed by long-time collaborator Richard Rankin. Through blurry underwater footage, disturbing and morbid images float in and out of focus until the situation becomes devastatingly clear in the video’s final moments. “An Altar or A Grave” prominently features Providence’s Assembly of Light Choir, who provide morose vocal incantations over the duo’s merciless plod.

Pre-order Christs, Redeemers from Thrill Jockey mailorder. Mailorder customers can also purchase an exclusive “Nullify My Life” long-sleeve t-shirt designed by The Body:
http://www.thrilljockey.com/thrill/The-Body/Christs-Redeemers

The Body will be bringing their message of misanthropy and horror to a town near you as they embark on a comprehensive US tour this fall, including a special Halloween show at Saint Vitus in Brooklyn and a hometown Portland show November 23rd with Neurosis, Tragedy, and Atriarch. More dates will be announced soon.

The Body on Tour:
Oct. 15th – San Francisco, CA – Thee Parkside
Oct. 16th – Arcata, CA – Mex n’ Wow
Oct. 17th – Portland, OR – The Know
Oct. 19th – Seattle, WA – The Highline
Oct. 23rd – Minneapolis, MN – Hexagon w/ False
Oct. 24th – Chicago, IL – The Empty Bottle w/ Oozing Wound
Oct. 25th – Milwaukee, WI – Riverwest Free Space
Oct. 26th – Columbus, OH – The Summit
Oct. 27th – Pittsburgh, PA – The Shop
Oct 29th – Philadelphia, PA – Kung Fu Necktie w/ Pissgrave, Krieg, Drums Like Machine Guns
Oct. 30th – Providence, RI – Machines With Magnets
Oct. 31st – Brooklyn, NY – Saint Vitus
Nov. 3rd – New Orleans, LA – The Mushroom
Nov. 4th – Baton Rouge, LA – Spanish Moon
Nov. 5th – Little Rock, AR – Whitewater Tavern
Nov. 10th – Phoenix, AZ – Wall St.
Nov. 12th – San Diego, CA – The Soda Bar w/ Author and Punisher, Diamond Lakes
Nov. 13th – Santa Monica, CA – Almost Heaven
Nov. 23rd – Portland, OR – Roseland Theater w/ Neurosis, Tragedy, Atriarch

https://www.facebook.com/pages/the-body/334047229514
http://thrilljockey.com/

Propelled by languid fuckall and bolstered by a lysergic drawl to rival that of Dead Meadow, Chicago trio Viper Fever make a lo-fi debut in the form of their Super Heavy Garage EP. They’ve been a band less than a year at this point, but have worked quickly and have a couple tours already under their belt. If the songs on the Super Heavy Garage EP — “Summer Time,” “Woman” and “You’re on Fire” — are anything to go by, a barebones approach is at the heart of what they do, but with tone to satisfy and attitude-drenched swagger, the first-name-only trio of guitarist/vocalist Tim, bassist Dan and drummer/organist Mark seem to have a good idea early on of how to get the most out of their relatively minimalist style. “Garage” should be a clue in the title of the EP.

Don’t forget the “super heavy” either, though. The three-piece may yet prove to just be getting their shit together stylistically, but whether it’s the  faster, lead-driven riffing of “Summer Time” or Witch-style stoner drench of “Woman,” they manage to hone songs that are memorable in themselves and which hit with a decent impact. I don’t know what they recorded on, but organ is layered in with drums in the midsection of “Summer Time,” so I’d doubt it’s completely live — Mark also plays some fills at that point that would make it more or less impossible — but it sounds close enough, and with Tim‘s voice up front in the mix and heavily reverbed, they sound practice-room natural and no sloppier than seems to be the intent.

“Woman” has probably the strongest hook in its chorus, but is even more marked out by the downshift in pace from the EP’s opener. Dan offers some standout bass work alongside Tim‘s guitar, only furthering the laid back groove, and while it’s not a huge, consuming wall of fuzz, it’s certainly enough to get the chillout across. I’d swear I can hear a tape click off at the end of it. To finish out, “You’re on Fire” comes on with bigger crash, but Tim keeps the same nasal inflection in his vocals and the song winds up with a kind of intense loiter, restless but going nowhere — a perfect execution of patient fuzz delivered with a punkish spirit behind in the tradition of The Stooges and any number of their minions. The sway in “You’re on Fire” comes to a conclusion not with a big rock finish or long fade, but with the band simply stopping, underlining their garage roots and keep-it-simple ethic.

Since the whole Super Heavy Garage EP is only about 10 minutes long, it’s probably fair to assume Viper Fever are holding more cards than they’re showing in terms of their sound, but especially if they keep touring, it’s easy to think that the aesthetic they’ve begun to construct could quickly become their own. As it is, the Super Heavy Garage EP is fodder for any limited 7″ or tapes or whathaveyou in addition to the CD the band has put out through their own Fuzz Daddy Records, and serves as a solid announcement of their arrival as their work gets underway. I’m glad to have them added to The Obelisk Radio.

You can hear Viper Fever‘s Super Heavy Garage EP now as part of the playlist streaming live 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and snag yourself a CD or free download through the Viper Fever Bandcamp:

Viper Fever, Super Heavy Garage EP (2013)

Viper Fever on Thee Facebooks

Viper Fever on Bandcamp